The federal government is offering real estate investors a rare opportunity — the chance to snap up a historic courthouse and office building in downtown Los Angeles. The landmark U.S. Courthouse, constructed in the 1930s on Spring Street near City Hall, is up for grabs as part of the General Services Administration’s plan to sell off outdated and underused federal properties. The agency managing government buildings states on its website that the goal is to downsize the federal real estate portfolio and ease the burden on taxpayers. The Trump administration is leading the charge to shrink the federal government’s size.
New U.S. courthouse facilities opened on First Street in 2016, housing federal courts and law enforcement agencies like the U.S. Marshals Service and the U.S. attorney’s office for the Central District of California. The older Spring Street building currently houses the National Labor Relations Board, Small Business Administration, and the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of California, according to the GSA. The Superior Court of Los Angeles County now occupies the former federal courtrooms. With a slowdown in commercial property sales downtown, the timing of the building hitting the market is less than ideal. Many office towers struggled with tenant losses during the pandemic and are still in the process of recovery.
Commercial property broker Mike Condon Jr. from Cushman & Wakefield estimates that the courthouse could fetch around $60 million, though the GSA has not disclosed an asking price. Institutional buyers may not show much interest in the property due to the need for redevelopment in downtown L.A., Condon suggests. The pool of potential buyers could comprise wealthy individuals or family offices willing to hold onto the property until demand for space increases in the market. Conversions to apartments are among the possible renovations. Despite the sale of federal buildings, federal tenants may continue to lease their space from the buyer, as per the GSA. The U.S. Courthouse on 312 N. Spring St. was the third federal building erected in Los Angeles to accommodate its rapidly expanding population in the early 20th century.
It’s uncertain how much of the building’s 750,000 square feet remains unoccupied, as a GSA representative did not respond to a comment request. Designed in the Art Moderne style by Los Angeles architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood, who is best known for his work on National Park lodges like the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite, the courthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Noteworthy cases tried there include Mendez vs. Westminster, a precursor to Brown vs. Board of Education, and a breach-of-contract lawsuit filed by actress Bette Davis against Warner Bros. The courthouse is considered a crucial element in the civic center’s array of buildings surrounding the more flamboyant City Hall, as noted by Dan Rosenfeld, a real estate executive with experience in managing state, county, and city properties in the L.A. Civic Center. Rosenfeld expresses shock and dismay at the government’s haste in selling the building, criticizing the administration’s swift and thoughtless actions.
